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Administration Announces Key Diplomatic Posts

By Mark Landler March 11, 2009 4:48 pmMarch 11, 2009 4:48 pm

President Obama filled several sensitive diplomatic posts on Wednesday, announcing the nomination of ambassadors to Afghanistan, Iraq, and NATO, and lining up a special envoy to handle the transfer of prisoners from the military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Daniel Fried, currently the assistant secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, will lead the administration’s negotiations with European and other countries over the transfer of prisoners from Guantanamo, according to administration officials. A former ambassador to Poland, Mr. Fried worked in the National Security Council during the Bush administration.

Mr. Obama, as expected, plans to send Lt. Gen. Karl Eikenberry to Kabul and Christopher R. Hill to Baghdad. General Eikenberry was the commander of combined military forces in Afghanistan, while Mr. Hill is currently assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs and was a special envoy for North Korea.
Ivo H. Daalder, a former Clinton administration official, was nominated as United States ambassador to NATO, and Alexander Vershbow, a retired diplomat who served as ambassador to South Korea, is to become an assistant secretary of defense overseeing the Pentagon’s relationship with NATO.

Mr. Hill’s appointment to Baghdad became enmeshed in controversy after Gen. Anthony C. Zinni, a former top American commander in the Middle East, said that he had been offered the job before Mr. Hill, only to have the offer retracted without explanation.

In a statement, Mr. Obama thanked the men for taking on “tough assignments.” Mr. Fried’s job may prove the toughest, since few, if any, countries are likely to welcome Guantanamo inmates.

Speaking to reporters on a Middle East trip last week, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said, “I think we have been quite encouraged at the positive, receptive responses we’ve been getting. But we’re not ready to go yet and actually make specific requests.”

The Senate must confirm the nominees, with the exception of Mr. Fried, who, as a special envoy, will not require Congressional approval.

One more thing. If the Americans are not winning the war in Afghanistan, where are they winning it? Who is winning? What does it take to win anyway? Just because life is tough for a while doesn’t mean it’s over.

Obama is rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic as both our economy and our foreign policy continue to sink.

There is something nutso about this country of mine. It wants to change the world in our image because we are the “shining city upon a hill.” Ah yes, from Matthew to the Puritans, to Henry Luce, to Obama, we are goodness incarnate. If the world will listen to us we can make the world whole! If only so. Face it, we want to rule the world but we’re bad at it. Why should anyone follow us?

We need to get out of Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan pronto!

Obama’s Afghanistan thrust, aka Bush II policy, will fail– The rationale for staying in Afghanistan is wacko-we’re there to prevent them from attacking here. How many times have I heard this: From Russia, to China, Korea, to Vietnam, to Nicaragua, and on and on–same old story. Everybody is waiting to attack us–these evildoers will slip a bomb in with their underwear in their luggage and leave it in a Times square bus stop–and BLAM–we’re done for.
Enough! No one will attack us–just stop invading and droning their countries.
Obama claims he wants to be friends with the Muslim world and yet sends drones to kill then in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
I’m no expert but I can tell you the Obama plan of re- invading Afghanistan is DOA. Just ask the master of foreign armies dying in that country, Rudyard Kipling.
The place is still part of the “Great Game”–countries near and far want a piece of the action–energy routes, geopolitical control. So India fights Pakistan (solve this one and the whole region will quiet down!), the Taliban/Pushtuns fight Russia, USA, Iran. It gets so mixed up.
The place needs a grand bargain–make it neutral like Switzerland, offer a little something to everyone.
But whatever you do, don’t send foreign soldiers there!

You still need an explanation for why Zinni didn’t get the job? I can help with that. Anybody who would make the kind of public brouhaha he made when he didn’t get the job would be a really lousy ambassador – especially to a volatile place like Iraq. And to our very great good luck, someone in the Obama administration figured that out before it was too late.

One of my great hopes for our nation is that the people serving our nation will not allow Obama’s inexperience as an administrator or manager damage their decisiveness and responses to reality. When the President is weak and wrong, good people everywhere need to be hypervigilant.

Augie25 is correct in saying that when a president is weak and wrong , etc. The last eight years have demonstrated this. However, It’s not only “good people” who need to be on their toes, it’s all of us, the good, bad, and ugly.
I believe tha we can all depend on Obama’s decisiveness and his response to reality to lead us through the mess left behind by pres. cheney and his little dog george.

Augustine 25 ( John D. ) is correct when he says that when a president is weak and wrong, people everywhere need to be hyper-vigilant . Thank God that is not the case with the current president ( intelligent, thoughtful, and right ), but we certainly needed this vigilence the last eight years ( stupid, stupid, stupid ).

Groucho Marx is reputed to have said that he would not want to be the member of any club that would have him as a member. I have the belief that the same applies to anyone who would want to succeed George W. Bush. Fortunately for us Barak Obama is stupid enough to try. I have this fear that the damage wrought by George W. Bush will be beyond the scope of any president to undo. Augustine 25/JohnD notwithstanding I’m glad that Pres. Obama is trying. Contrary to the said Augustin 25/JohnD, Rush Limbaugh et al. it will take us years to discover whether or not he has begun to be successful.

Kay and noe– All you seem to want to do is pursue your grudge match against Bush 43. Here’s the news: that show closed. Do you really think continuing to critique it play is a meaningful activity? Or are you trying to distract attention from the disappointments of the present?

I am more interested in who are being given the small, out of the way places. It is all very well promoting he ‘big tickets’, it is what happens elsewhere. I am not familiar with US policy on the status of diplomatic missions. Do all senior diplomats change with the administration in Washington?

The UK has removed its diplomatic precence from dozens of countries since the 1980’s. Not that anyone would necessarily notice. Some Forgien and Commonwealth functions are carried out by employed staff from the country the mission is in (The Spainish islands for example), others by suitable British Nationals who have retired to the country in question.

President Obama drew criticism on Thursday when he said, “we don’t have a strategy yet,” for military action against ISIS in Syria. Lawmakers will weigh in on Mr. Obama’s comments on the Sunday shows.Read more…